Darius Garland suited up for the first time versus the Pacers after recovering from a sprained toe, while Evan Mobley and De'Andre Hunter returned to the lineup after missing Game 2 due to a sprained ankle and a sprained thumb, respectively.

In a raucous Gainbridge Fieldhouse that threatened to swallow them whole, Donovan Mitchell‘s Cavaliers arrived facing the unthinkable: a 0–2 hole in the Eastern Conference semifinals, with every whisper forecasting their demise.